Purpose
Benign bone tumors are relatively seldom compared to degenerative and inflammatory skeletal diseases. There are usually diagnostic difficulties because of their markedly high differential diagnostic potential. This leads to problems regarding the further procedure.
Problem
Evaluation of the significance of radiology in the management of benign skeletal lesions.
Material and methods
Significant diagnostic elements of benign bone tumors are presented by means of data from the well-known literature and personal experiences.
Results
The tasks in radiology when diagnosing primary bone tumors or tumor-like lesions are firstly, detection or exclusion of a lesion, secondly, limiting the differential diagnostic possibilities or reaching a certain diagnosis and thirdly, staging of bone tumors in cases where the disease needs further diagnostic measures. In particular circumstances the diagnostics of disease recurrence can additionally be necessary.
Conclusion
The diagnostics of primary and secondary benign (and malignant) bone tumors requires a specialized osteoradiological expertise because of their rarity and the differential diagnostic and differential therapeutic potential. Radiology and pathology are the basis of diagnosing bone tumors and tumor-like lesions. Benign bone tumors and tumor-like lesions can often be diagnosed radiologically; therefore, the choice between a conservative (surveillance) or interventional (surgery) procedure will be correct in most cases.